Researchers at the University of Basel have developped molecular factories that mimic nature. To achieve this they loaded artificial organelles inside micrometer-sized natural blisters (vesicles) produced by cells.
This year’s Ružička Prize has been awarded to Christof Sparr, Assistant Professor
at the University of Basel. The 38-year-old chemist was honored for his outstanding achievements in the development of new synthesis methods.
Enzymes behave differently in a test tube compared with the molecular scrum of a living cell. Chemists from the University of Basel have now been able to simulate these confined natural conditions in artificial vesicles for the first time.
Scientists from the University of Basel have succeeded in organizing spherical compartments into clusters mimicking the way natural organelles would create complex structures. They managed to connect the synthetic compartments by creating bridges made of DNA between them.
Scientists at the University of Basel have developed nanoparticles which can serve as efficient contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging.
Natural channel proteins are integrated into artificial membranes to facilitate the transport of ions and molecules. Researchers at the University of Basel have now been able to measure the movement of these channel proteins for the first time.